The Atlanta Falcons have a rare opportunity when they host NFC South foe the New Orleans Saints on Thursday. Not only would a win dash what's left of the Saints' playoff hopes, but it would also put the Falcons on the brink of winning the division title before the 2012 NFL season's final month.

Despite the Falcons' record, there are questions about just how good they are. Seven of their victories were by a touchdown or less, including last weekend's one-point escape against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If Atlanta wins and the Bucs lose again this week, the South will belong to the Falcons.

With the spotlight all to themselves against a marquee opponent, the Falcons can make a statement and stamp their resume as the NFC's worthy No. 1 seed. The alternative is losing a fifth consecutive game to the Saints and leaving questions about another fade come playoff time.

To avoid an upset, the Falcons must keep diversifying their offense, execute early and put constant pressure on Saints quarterback Drew Brees to keep delivering to overcome his team's major defensive issues.

With Sunday's 31-21 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, the Saints finally broke their streak of allowing at least 400 yards of total offense to every opponent this season. But that number is misleading — the 49ers needed only that much because they got two touchdowns off interception returns of 50 and 42 yards.

The Falcons must follow the Niners' lead and aggressively go after big plays by getting their speediest, shiftiest playmakers in the open field.

Second-year wide receiver Julio Jones and second-year running back Jacquizz Rodgers weren't as a big of factors as they could have been in Week 10 against the Saints. Jones, however, looked like more his explosive healthy self last week against the Buccaneers. His sore ankle didn't keep him from producing a key 80-yard touchdown as part of a career-high 147-yard day. Rodgers got the majority of the work from the backfield and rewarded the Falcons with 79 yards and a TD with 12 touches against a tough Bucs run defense.

The Saints will spend their energy trying to take away veteran receivers Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez from quarterback Matt Ryan. They had all kinds of trouble trying to cover those two in Week 10. White and Gonzalez combined for 18 catches and 236 yards. Gonzalez had two TDs in the game.

Jones and Rodgers must be an integral part of Ryan's passing attack from the get-go. Both can take short catches the distance on the fast track of the Georgia Dome, and the Saints have problems with tackling in the open field.

While Gonzalez causes matchup problems at tight end, the Falcons defense must focus on his Saints counterpart to keep Brees from keeping up with them in a shootout. Jimmy Graham dominated Atlanta in coverage (8 catches, 146 yards, 2 TDs) back on Nov. 11, but he cooled the past two weeks.

The Falcons must work to keep Brees' favorite target under wraps. Their linebackers and safeties will have their hands full trying to contain Graham and running back Darren Sproles, but they have better personnel than the Saints to at least slow down explosive offensive players.

Don't expect the Falcons to win big; that hasn't been their M.O. They will impress with a much-needed rebound against their archrivals. As much as it's important to score often on the Saints, the Falcons also must get their offensive at peak efficiency in advance of a playoff run.